In April 2024, the former lead singer of the famous heavy metal band Skid Row put up a cover of “I Will Always Love You” on YouTube. It shocked the internet and got 1.1 million views in just two months!
Erik Grönwall’s most recent record with Skid Row has the songs “Not Dead Yet” and “World on Fire.” He might seem like the least likely singer to do a good job on the Whitney Houston cover. But his natural opposite to the pop scene is wildly charming in how it can be changed, especially after Erik’s soul-stirring falsettos and fascinating, innocent choruses.
After a soft beginning that shows Erik’s smooth voice can perfectly smooth over Whitney’s crazy vocal runs while adding shine to their tones, Erik lets go of tight control of the song, ending the second chorus with the signature falsetto “Yeahh!” of a rock star and paving the way for a blissful saxophone solo.
In the last chorus of the song, electric guitars fill Erik’s clear voice with strange harmonies before he hits Whitney Houston’s famous high notes without any falsetto at all, giving him the pure, powerful chest voice of a classic rock singer.
Erik Grönwall is a rock and metal singer from Stockholm. He became famous in his home country after winning the Swedish TV show “Idol” in 2009. He was 36 years old when his song went viral. Because of all the attention he got from Pop Idol, Erik’s first song, “Higher,” and first album, which also had the same name, both peaked at #1 in Sweden. “Higher” even made it to #2 on the Year-End charts.
Erik then became the lead singer of the Swedish hard rock/heavy metal band H.E.A.T., taking over from the band’s original singer, Kenny Leckremo. He recorded four studio albums with the band over ten years, until he left in 2021 after being diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) in March of that year.
After a long and painful bone marrow transfer, Erik joined Skid Row for a short time between 2022 and 2024. He sang on the band’s first album in 16 years, called “The Gang’s All Here.” Erik had to give up traveling with a famous rock band because he didn’t want to put his immune system under too much stress while it was still getting better.
Erik said in a strong interview with Blabbermouth, “I just wanna say, before the media starts with all this f*****g clickbait s**t, let me be clear.” Pay close attention: I’m not sick. I don’t really not want to tour. I love traveling. I just need to even things out. There have also been many times when we have tried as a band to find the right mix. The day was over, though, and I knew it was best for me to step down.
Thanks to YouTube, Erik had a job he could fall back on. Erik has 117k followers who follow him on vlogs, covers, and insights. Many of his vocal covers have gone viral, such as “I Will Always Love You,” “Without You” by Mariah Carey, and “Livin’ On A Prayer” by Bon Jovi.
